Prisonerstuck
by BlissfulCacophony
Summary: In the dungeons deep below the palaces of the highbloods, a lone mutant blood tends to the prisoners, a slave with the worst job. A Karezi fanfic. Warnings for much angst. A spinoff of my other fanfic "bloodloss" though different enough that they can exist independently.
1. Meeting by Chance

Karkat walked slowly down the dingy hallway, pulling a cart after him, occasionally glancing at the armor clad troll following close behind him, watching his every move. Karkat stopped the car at each barred prison cell he encountered along the way, sliding a uniform tray of water and stale bread under a slot at the bottom of each door. Some of the inhabitants would ignore him and avoid his eyes. Others would thank him, touch his bandaged hands, even exchange hushed words with him for a few brief moments.

"What did they do to your hands?" They'd ask.

Karkat would only sigh. "Just some hot water. I'll be okay," he'd answer, feeling the impatient gaze of his supervisor bore into his back if he lingered too long. He'd then quickly move on before his keepers decided to find more ways to make his skin blister.

The excuse about the hot water was an understatement, the promise of him being okay, just something he said to stave off their concern for him. The day before he had done one of those stupid things he always ended up doing just because he couldn't live with himself if he ignored someone else's pain. One of the prisoners, wrongfully imprisoned, or so she claimed, had gotten a pretty rough beat down and the guards had done nothing to treat her afterward, so naturally Karkat just had to take pity on her. He'd snuck off, stealing some pain reliving medicine and bandages and giving them to her. He'd been stealthy enough that the prisoner never got caught, but he did get caught for sneaking off, and that hadn't ended well. His supervisor had immediately reported him to the keepers who thought it would be a convenient idea to force his hands and forearms into boiling, scalding dishwater until his skin turned hot pinkish-red, a suiting punishment that could take weeks to heal and would probably leave scars.

He couldn't say he regretted what he did, but he knew he wouldn't be trying anything too risky for awhile, part of the reason being that every time he touched something it burned, and smarted, making tricks and extra work something he couldn't afford, and the other part being that these things required tact. He knew the guards would be breathing down his neck for awhile, making sure he didn't try anything. He'd keep them pleased, pretending he was just as broken and pathetic as they expected him to be, staying on his best behavior until they felt they could become lazy and slowly, without them even noticing, the leash they kept on him would become looser and looser. If anything the guards were gullible, and had little motivation to keep them from slacking off.

He sighed and continued on, coming across the next cell. The prisoner inside had her hands chained above her bowed head, which was covered with messy shoulder length hair and had pointy, conical horns. Those horns reminded him of someone he knew once, but he didn't really want to think about her.

The guard unlocked and opened the cell, allowing him access. She was one of those types, the prisoners who he had to spoon feed because their restraints were only removed when a guard had to a good hold on them. He took a tray and walked into the cell. The prisoner seemed unresponsive as he knelt before her and noticed the blue-green and black of her bruises. A turquoise blood, with horns like that? It had to be a coincidence.

"Soup's on." He said.

The prisoners nose twitched and she looked up. Karkat almost dropped the tray. Her face. . .her eyes. The face was unmistakeable, her eyes unlike anyone else, blind and solid red.

"Terezi?" He said in disbelief.

Terezi looked surprised and sniffed toward him, pulling at her chains and scrunching her nose in surprise. "That smell, it's been so long. . ." She paused, and then nearly shouted. "Karkles?!"

"Shooooosh." Shushed Karkat hurriedly. "Whisper. Please."

Terezi shook her head. "I thought you were dead." She whispered.

"Well I'm not much better." muttered Karkat. He looked over to his supervisor who was beginning to tap his foot. "Listen, I'd love to sit and chat, but I'm here with food so just let me feed you so I can move on."

Terezi looked almost offended. "Karkat! I haven't heard from you in almost a sweep and you're not going to tell me where you've been?"

Karkat sighed. "Terezi, I'd love to, but you smell that other troll out there? Yeah. He's my supervisor. The minute he starts getting impatient, he'll report me for wasting time and keeping him waiting, and I'll spend the next week gagged so I can't spend time talking. My forearms are already blistering. I can't afford that on top of it."

He held his arm in front of her face, which became concerned upon taking a whiff of it.

"Oh." She said. "Sorry. I didn't know. I'll see you again though right. . .well you'll be here again?"

Karkat set about tearing up the hard roll. "Yeah. I make this round twice a day. . .It's good to see you by the way, I just wish it didn't have to be here."

Terezi nodded, letting him feed her, and memorizing his scent before he stood and left.

The supervisor gave Karkat a reproachful glare and some muttered reprimanding for taking so long which Karkat didn't give very much heed to, seeing as he'd heard it a million times, and nodded in response.

A few cells later he came across the troll he had helped the day before. She looked better, but concern crossed her face when she saw his hands and forearms. She opened her mouth to say something, but Karkat ran a finger across his throat to get to her to stop.

"I'm sorry." She mouthed, taking the food.

"Don't worry about it." He mouthed back.

She pulled a small jar of what was left of the medicine he had stolen for her from her smock and discreetly dropped it in his apron pocket.

Karkat nodded appreciatively and again moved on, patting his prize as he went.


	2. Paying a Visit

Karkat stayed up instead of sleeping right away. He had too much to think about, not to mention some self-treatment to do. He sat cross-legged on the floor with water, a cloth, fresh bandages, and medicine next to him, then began the slow process of peeling off his bandages, cringing every time they peeled the dry, dead skin away with them.

Terezi. She was here. He could hardly believe it still. It was good to see her, generally healthy, alive, okay, within his reach. He had missed her, and had given in to the fact that he'd probably never see her again, until today. Still, he wasn't happy to see that she was a prisoner here. She'd be cooped up just like him, wasting away in that cage. The Highbloods could do anything to her. He never wanted to see anyone stuck with that fate, much less Terezi.

After a lot of pausing to curse and wait for the pain to subside, he finally got all his bandages off, leaving his raw skin exposed and sensitive. He cringed and hissed as he wet the rag with his sore fingers, took some deep breath, and talked himself through wiping his arms down with the cool water, feeling the heat radiating from his skin as he went. Finally, he stuck his fingers in the jar and rubbed the medicine over his arms, sighing as it cooled and soothed everything it touched. When it came time to replace his bandages, he was relieved to find it was much easier than taking them off and that his skin already felt better.

He cleaned up, and finally lied down on his cot, deciding what his next move would be now that Terezi had come into his life again. He knew he wouldn't be able to talk to her with his supervisor peering over his shoulder, but he did get a short break everyday to eat. As long as he informed his supervisor where he'd be, got permission, and didn't wander from that spot until his supervisor retrieved him, he could pretty much eat wherever he pleased. It certainly wasn't a good time to smuggle things to prisoners, because he was almost always being watched by someone, but he was sure they wouldn't mind him talking to a prisoner. Maybe he would even butter his supervisor up, and tell him that he was doing it so as not to mar the efficiency of his rounds. Yes. That would earn him some time with Terezi for sure, if only for a little while.

Pleased, he pulled the meager, threadbare blanket over his head and fell asleep.

Terezi sat alone in her cell, her arms aching from being chained above her head so long. Karkat said he'd be back, and she quietly wondered if he could really keep that promise, beyond their silent encounter that morning when he'd come again to feed her. Around her she could smell the must and dampness of the walls, the rusted, corroding metal of old bars and shackles, the sweat, blood, and filth of the other prisoners. It made her sad almost, to think the people she may have convicted would end up here, where the sounds of pained moans and mad screaming sometimes echoed through the halls, and the heavy footsteps of guards pounded by with questionable intent. Of course, were she in charge, only the deserving would be in this place, but the subjugglators didn't think that way and the legislacerators were a corrupt system. Things weren't as they should be.

Then among the normal heavy sounds of the dungeons, she picked out something softer, quicker, lighter. She sniffed the air, trying to make out the source of the noise. That scent. Could it really be him or was she just smelling things?

"Terezi? Are you awake?" Came Karkat's voice gruffly.

Terezi lifted her head immediately. Sure enough there was Karkat, sitting outside the cell, holding a bowl of food in his lap. He still smelled as tattered and dirty as before, wearing a grey smock, loose pants, and an apron that was probably white once, but his delicious cherry scent was unmistakeable through it all.

"Karkles? Yeah I am." She paused for a moment. "You actually came."

Karkat nodded. "Well I said I would didn't I? I mean, I wanted to. I was wondering if you just wanted to talk for awhile, I mean, until I have to go."

"Of course I do, but are you even supposed to be here? I don't want you getting in trouble, or hurt again for that matter."

"It's alright. It's my meal break. I've already asked permission from my supervisor and everything, even sweet-talked him a little bit for good measure. Now, how did you even end up here?"

Terezi put her head down again. "Well it's not the first time I've been locked up."

Karkat stared at her in surprise. "Not the first time?"

Terezi chuckled a little. "Well, I'm kind of infamous, always running from the law anymore."

"You're kidding."

"I know, I know, it doesn't sound like me."

Karkat tilted his head. "That's for sure. But why? I mean, of all the people I know who could become outlaws, you didn't even make the list."

Terezi sighed. "I know, it's just this law, it's not actually justice. It's so full of corruption that right now it seems only the rebels have just ideals. My allegiance lies with them, and if that puts me in opposition to the rancid order of hemocasteing then so be it."

Karkat nodded, finally realizing what she was talking about. "Oh. That makes sense now. I'm glad to hear the rebels are still fighting, even without the Signless."

"Yes. You know we would never give up, even if it has landed many of us in situations like ours," she sighed, "but at least I did the best I could, and I got to see you again. Where have you been anyway? No one has heard from you since the Signless was executed, except when Nepeta's moirail said he saw you in the hands of the subjugglators. We all assumed you were dead."

Karkat nodded sadly, remembering that day more clearly than he wished to. "I almost was killed. I ran into Gamzee while walking back to the hideout, except he was different. He told me that his ancestor had sobered him up and changed him, and told me that he was the one who–"

"Ratted out the Signless?" Finished Terezi.

Karkat blinked at her. "How did you know that?"

"Gamzee hasn't exactly been secretive about it. His betrayal is common knowledge among the rebels now."

Karkat looked back down at his food, and poked with it absentmindedly. "I guess I really have been sheltered from the world down here then. I haven't heard a thing about the rebels since they put me down here, and all I overhear from the guards is about getting paid and hating their jobs." He sighed and shrugged. "Anyway, back to how I ended up here in the first place. I tried to run, but Gamzee wounded me, I still have the scar on my shoulder, and took me to the Grand Highblood, who spared my life, but ordered that I be enslaved and never see the Alternian sky again. I was branded as subjugglator property, and I've been here ever since."

Terezi sensed his displeasure at retelling the story, and wished her hands were free so she could comfort him in some way. "I'm sorry, Karkat. I know Gamzee meant a lot to you. The two of you were so close before all this."

Karkat shook his head. "It's alrght. I've learned to get over it."

"Still, I'm glad you're alive. I wish I could let Kanaya know."

Karkat perked up again. "Kanaya? How is she?"

Terezi shrugged. "I can't say for right now, but she's better than she was. Losing you, the Signless, and the Dolorosa took a toll on her."

Karkat looked concerned. "The Dolorosa? What happened to her?"

Terezi paused, realizing he really wouldn't know. "Karkat, she was enslaved after the Signless's execution by Orphaner Duelscar. We have reason to believe she's long dead."

"No." Croaked Karkat, shocked, his voice desperate.

"I'm sorry, Karkles."

Karkat hung his head. "It's. . .It's alright. . .Kanaya must have been crushed."

Terezi nodded sadly. "She's really strong, you know. Through all her grief, she's still managed to be a rock for all of us. The rebels would be nowhere without her, especially since there are more who have been lost."

"More?"

"Yeah. The Psiioniic was taken as the Condesce's Helmsman, and Redglare was killed by the pirate Marquise Spinneret Mindfang not long after."

"I'm sorry."

Terezi sighed. "It's okay, it's been a long time since then, and I'm not the only one who has mourned. There are more that have been captured. . .have you happened to see any of them?"

Karkat shook his head. "No, sorry. Either they weren't here or they kept me from them."

Terezi nodded. "It's alright. They must really keep you on a tight leash here."

"That's for sure. My supervisor is always breathing down my neck, you know, supervising me. I have to ask him before I do anything, and he throws the biggest fit when I don't. It's so aggravating you don't even know. One time he–" He paused when he heard a voice calling for him.

Terezi turned to him. "Is that your supervisor?"

Karkat sighed and rolled his eyes. "Yeah." He stood up, picking up his bowl. "I have to go before he makes a big deal out of me not being ready when he came blah blah blah."

Terezi giggled. "I see you haven't changed."

Karkat scoffed. "Why would I? I've just been underground under everyone's thumb in this filthy place for nearly a sweep. Not life changing at all."

Terezi smirked. "I'll see you tomorrow right?"

"Count on it."

"Oh! And Karkat?"

"Yeah?"

"Please don't tell anyone about my smell and taste thing. They all know I'm blind, and I want them to assume from there."

"I wont say a word."

"Thanks."

Karkat's supervisor turned the corner and stomped up the Karkat, who bowed his head contritely, and said a few gruff words before turning around and motioning for Karkat to come.

Karkat turned back to Terezi for a moment, nodded, and then followed his supervisor down the hall.


	3. Losing You Again

Another day passed. Karkat had come and they had spent their short time together getting to know each other again until Karkat, once again, had to leave. That day turned into a week and soon they established a steady routine. It was something Karkat had come to look forward to everyday. He had started to finish his duties faster just so he could see her for longer. The more he came, the more he wished that this would never have to end.

Now Terezi awaited him a third time, but she knew this talk wouldn't be as cheery as their previous ones. She wished she could just keep him naïve, but this was going to be her last chance to tell him, and keeping it from him would be cruel. She didn't want to cause him any more heartbreak than she had to.

"Sorry I'm late." Said Karkat as he sat down in front of her cell.

"It's okay." Said Terezi simply, looking at the floor.

Karkat tilted his head. "What's wrong?"

"Karkles, there. . .There's something I haven't been telling you."

A pang of worry shot through Karkat's chest. He paused before speaking again. "And what's that, Terezi?"

"I. . .I haven't been on trial yet."

Karkat's jaw dropped. "What?!"

Terezi sighed. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier. It's just, I wanted this to last for as long as I could. The thing is, whatever they sentence me to tomorrow, it's not going to be good. I may never see you again. . .or they'll have me killed."

"WHAT?!" Karkat felt his heart speed up.

"But," Said Terezi quickly. "I have been doing things to hopefully improve my chances."

"Oh really? Like what?" Asked Karkat skeptically.

Terezi lowered her voice. "They all think I'm helplessly blind. That should keep me out of slavery, because I'd be useless for work. Also, I know my way through a standard trial. If I play my cards right, I can prove I'm too smart and worth too much to kill, hopefully. I know my walking free isn't an option, I've already confessed, but if I can just land imprisonment, my chance of eventual release is higher, not to mention you'd be here."

Karkat looked at the floor, finding little comfort in her plan. "Terezi. . ."

"What?"

"Promise me you'll do your best, please." He gripped the bars of her cell. "Stay alive."

Terezi nodded, turquoise tears gathering at the corners of her eyes as she tried to pretend she wasn't scared. "I'll do everything I can, Karkles, I promise."

Karkat took a deep breath and let go of the bars. "Thankyou. I. . .I don't want to lose you again."

"I know, me neither. . .thankyou for the past couple of days by the way. It means a lot that I got to see you again, and I hope to be back in a day or two, but if not, just know. . ." She took a deep breath. "I love you, Karkat."

Karkat's eyes widened, and his face flushed red as his heart sped up. For a moment he stared at her, speechless, but quickly pulled himself together. This was no time to just sit there gawking like an idiot. "I. . .I love you too, Terezi."

Terezi smiled a bit and the two sat in silence, savoring each other's company, until Karkat said goodbye, seeing his supervisor coming, and left.

Karkat woke up early, though it barely counted seeing as he'd only managed to dose that night, so he could sneak out of his quarters and run to Terezi's cell in an attempt to talk to her once last time. It didn't matter if he got punished for it. It was worth it. She'd left his heart in a state were it just wouldn't calm. She loved him. Flushed bright candy red. The thought made him so extremely happy, and embarrassed, and angry, he could hardly deal. Happy, because secretly he'd always felt the same way for her, embarrassed, because he'd spent so long denying it, and angry because that may have been the last time he'd see her and he had been such an awkward doofus about it.

In short, he felt his feet could not move fast enough.

He quickly turned the corner to her cell. A nervous tingling exploded in his torso as he neared it desperately. His stomach fluttered wildly, and his heart pounded painfully in his chest. For awhile he felt a nervous high, which quickly became heavy and hard when he saw that the guards had beat him to her. The cell was empty. Terezi was gone.

Karkat dropped to his knees, red tears streaming down the side of his face as he stared into the empty cell. He sat there for awhile, before wiping the tears away, picking himself up, and forcing himself to wander back to his quarters, wondering why he should even try to avoid his supervisor. Maybe a good session of discipline, a verbal lashing, and some rough, merciless pain infliction, would clear up his head, bring him back to reality. He wanted to believe Terezi really knew what she was doing, but that was hard. Chances were so slim, and things never seemed to work for the better in this cursed place. Hope usually only crushed him in the end.

When he made it back to his quarters, he lied down on his cot, and spent whatever time he had left to himself trying to pull himself together and convince himself that she'd be back.

Karkat had begun to wonder long ago if he enjoyed causing himself pain. Maybe he just liked it more than feeling nothing and giving into the dull reality of his life. He didn't want to accept it. He didn't want to get used to it. Bending the rules and getting caught sometimes reminded him that he still had a will he could exercise, and that he wasn't helpless. Reopening his old emotional scars and dredging up the past reminded him that he was strong enough to accept it without having to forget it. Striving to rub salt in his newest emotional wound was not something he would put past himself.

The next day he found himself coming back to Terezi's cell whenever he could, hoping to see her there again. He looked out for her on his rounds, even went as far to ask his supervisor about it. Every time he got the same answer. She wasn't there. She was never there. His supervisor only got annoyed, and said he knew nothing about it, and that it wasn't Karkat's place to be asking about things like that.

By the time the day had come to an end, Karkat's discouragement was horribly deep. The trial was probably long over. They wouldn't spend that much time convicting a rebel who's already confessed. Terezi was probably was far from his reach, if she was even still alive. As he prepared himself for another hopelessly sleepless night, he cursed himself for ever having been hopeful in the first place.

He laid down on his stomach on the cot, getting sick of staring at the stone wall, and gave in to the pressure in his throat and behind his eyes. He buried his face into the thin mattress, wrapped his arms around his head and let the sobbing come, hoping only that his supervisor would leave him alone for the night. The last thing he wanted was to be seen as pathetic by his superiors.

Then there was a knock on the door.

Karkat cursed under his breath and went about quickly wiping away the transparent tears, taking deep breaths, and trying to appear calm before getting up and answering the door. Outside stood his supervisor, who gave him his standard irritated glare before motioning to two guards behind him. One guard held a bundle in his arms, a person, wrapped up in a grey blanket that was dark and wet in places. Was that. . .blood?

The guard shoved the bundle into Karkat's arms, and Karkat attempted not to buckle as the weight of another person was put on his burns. He looked down at the bundle, then at his supervisor in confusion. In response, his supervisor only tossed a bag into the room and shut the door in Karkat's face. He could hear as it was locked from the outside for the night.

Karkat looked down at the bundle. Could it be? No. No way it could.

He laid the limp fabric wrapped body quickly on the cot, then carefully removed the cloth from the face. His breath caught when he saw the conical horns and matted hair. There, in his arms, pale and unresponsive, her eyes closed, her body limp and motionless, was Terezi.


	4. Highbloods Know How To Be Cruel

The court. Terezi smelled it before they got there. The guards had retrieved her early, before she had even woken up. She'd fought them as they pulled her to her feet and chained her wrists behind her back before dragging her by her arms out of the cell. As she'd left that cell behind her, she could only think of Karkat. Would he try to come and see her one last time? How would he respond when he saw that she was gone?

Now though, that all seemed of little significance.

A knot sat tight and heavy in her stomach as she let herself be dragged to the stone court ahead. It was small. Few were there besides the judge and jury. She understood why. She had already confessed. This was a trial to condemn, not convict, and right now all that mattered was survival.

She stumbled as the guards led her to the stone circle below the judge's podium, and forced her down to her knees, proceeding to stand guard on either side of her. She moved her head around, staring blankly forward, feigning confusion at the chattering voices around her. She already knew what she was going to say. She just had to keep up her act. If it all worked out, this would save her, hopefully.

"Silence!" Boomed a voiced, and Terezi's body jerked in surprise before she quickly bowed her head. "The trial is about to begin."

Terezi took a deep breath. His honorable tyranny was ready to start, meaning it was time for her performance to begin as well.

"Terezi Pyrope." He boomed.

Terezi lifted her head, staring up at him with sightless eyes, taking in his scent. He was an old, burly troll with minty blood similar to her own. They shared a caste, which she expected.

"You're Tyranny, I–" she started, but the judge interrupted her.

"Do you confess, as you did previously, to aiding and affiliating with rebels of the Empress?"

"Yes, but–"

"And do you agree that you, as a member of the legislative caste, have a full education of the Empress's law?"

"Yes, I do, and I–"

"So can you deny that you committed treason, knowing full well that you were doing so?"

"No, I can't, but before you–"

"Silence." Demanded the judge, and Terezi pursed her lips, realizing her plan was dead before it had even begun. "I've had enough of these attempts of yours. Do you think that just because you nearly became a servant of the law, that you are somehow entitled to a different standard even after breaking it? You've committed treason and have confessed to it. You've given up the right to speak in your own defense. If you are to speak, it will be only when you are spoken to, and what is asked of you. No more. You of all people should know this."

Terezi cursed under her breath, her heart pounding. He was right. She had hoped that perhaps a member of her own caste would act more in the interest of justice, but it seemed this judge would have no such exceptions. This wasn't going to end well.

"You're right. I apologize, your Tyranny." She said, bowing her head again, fearing what she knew was coming.

"Good. Now do you understand that the punishment for treason is execution?"

"Y-yes." Stammered Terezi, angry at herself for being such a screw-up.

"And that there is nothing to qualify you for exception?"

Terezi nodded, defeated. "Yes, your tyranny."

"Then I sentence you, Terezi Pyrope, to death by hanging."

The jury loudly agreed.

Terezi swallowed hard, choking down her emotions and taking deep breaths to calm herself. "I'm sorry Karkat." She whispered to the ground. "I failed you."

"HOLD UP JUST A MOTHERFUCKING SECOND." Boomed a rough, hostile voice. "I object."

A chill ran up Terezi's spine. She knew that voice. She knew the grape soda stink wafting in with the heavy footsteps of the slouched troll. What was he doing here?

"Please, subjugglator," Said the judge with every ounce of respect he hadn't given her. "We would all like to hear your alternate proposal."

In other words, disregard everything, the highblood was here.

"FIRST OFF," boomed Gamzee, strutting around the court like he owned everyone in it, which he pretty much did, "this troll is a liar."

Terezi tensed up. She could sense the judges seafoam eyes drifting down and resting on her. The air stank of his newly piqued malicious interest.

"What do you mean?" he growled.

Terezi sensed as Gamzee drew closer to her, his smell becoming more pungent as he did so.

He ran his his cold finger along the line of her jaw. "COOPERATE," he whispered harshly, "or I'll give up helping you, AND ENSURE YOUR DEATH."

Helping her? Why in the world would Gamzee be doing something like that? He wanted something. He had to be wanting something. This couldn't be for free. Still, she decided to play along anyway. This was her life on the line after all.

"This cunning little bitch, HAS BEEN PULLING THE WOOL OVER YOUR EYES. Hopelessly blind. WHAT AN ACT. She can get around by herself without a problem."

The crowd's confusion was a thick and sour scent that suddenly permeated the air.

"THIS NOSE OF HERS CAN SENSE WHAT HER EYES CAN'T, same with her tongue, JUST LIKE HER BLIND DRAGON LUSUS. It goes without saying that this ability is incredibly unique."

By now everyone was staring at her. Dragon lusi, as well as their charges, were a rarity. The chances of her needing to learn such an ability from her lusus, even more so.

"Prove this." Demanded the judge doubtfully.

Gamzee looked over at Terezi and she sighed reluctantly.

"You're blood color is seafoam green." She said. "Your eyes and the symbol on your robe, which is black and drapes around you and your chair, match that color. You also smell vaguely of it, which is common for most trolls. What does sea foam green smell like? It's a sort of minty smell, a little fresher than that of my own blood, which is a colder scent. The Jury is composed of mostly midbloods of the legislative caste and highbloods of the serving caste. I can tell because the clasps on their black ropes are the color and shape of their specific symbols. Oh, I forgot to mention, your horns are long, straight, and pointed. They smell a little uneven, rough like your skin. You're an old troll. Grey hints in your hair, though you attempt to hide it. The guards behind me are of different blood castes. The one on my left has sort of forest green eyes. Odd that he's even here. The one on my right is of the highblood service caste, with blood of a deep blue color." She grinned a little. "To me, you all smell absolutely mouthwatering. Now if only you were to let me taste someone, then I could tell you more. Shall I go on?"

"That's enough." Said the judge, sounding a little uncomfortable almost.

"THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I BELIEVE WE SHOULDN'T DISPOSE OF HER SO QUICKLY." Said Gamzee. "Also, if you think the information you interrogated her for is correct, YOU'RE WRONG. What I've heard from it sound like classic rebel deception, AND THAT DOESN'T SURPRISE ME. She wouldn't give something like that out so easily. SHE NEEDS TO BE BROKEN FIRST, only then can we get her to tell us what we need to know. IT WORKED FOR THE MUTANT BLOOD WE CAPTURED NEARLY A SWEEP AGO. I have no doubt the same method will prove effective on her as well."

Terezi clenched her teeth. Obviously Gamzee's definition of "helping" was different from her own.

"And what do you propose we do?" Asked the judge.

Gamzee stood behind Terezi. "FOURTY-EIGHT LASHES, for her treason. THEN MAKE SOME USE OF HER. Put her to work in the dungeons. IT WILL BREAK HER FASTER THAN SIMPLE IMPRISONMENT."

Terezi's breath caught. Fourty-eight lashes? Fourty-eight? The amount rarely got much higher. Still, more importantly, how did he know? How did he know she wanted to be in a position where she would be with Karkat? There was no way that this was simply coincidence.

The judge nodded and pounded his gavel on the podium. "It's been decided then. Terezi Pyrope, you have been sentenced to fourty-eight lashes for your treason, and to be enslaved in the dungeons afterward. The flogging will be carried out late tomorrow. Until then you will await your sentence in a holding cell, and will be branded as subjugglator property."

Terezi nodded, attempting to hide her shaking until the guards forced her to her feet and dragged her away.

o0o0o0o0

The cell they took her to was very much like the one she'd been in for the past week, and yet it was more threatening. Maybe it was the fact that she was tied to a chair instead of being chained to the wall like before, or maybe it was the furnace across the way, filled with hot, shaped metal that had ended up around her wrists shortly after getting there. The guards had not hesitated to bruise her as they held her down, gag her to stifle her screaming, and tighten her restraints painfully to keep her from squirming as she felt like the irons were eating away at her skin. They hadn't let her sleep, and by the time the night was through, she wasn't sure if she was going to make it through the next day.

Her irons had cooled a few hours ago, but they still stung as they scraped at her burnt skin. She stared blankly forward, her nose picking up only acrid smoke, hot metal, and scorched flesh. She was so exhausted, but the uncomfortable way her body was strapped into the chair kept her from sleep. She was already in enough pain as it was, she didn't need the muscle ache on top of it.

Secretly she wondered if Karkat had been through something like this as well. Gamzee had mentioned him, "mutant blood" could refer to no one else, and that he had been broken before they'd interrogated him for useful information. She imagined what it must have been like for him to go through suffering probably very similar to her own. No wonder he seemed different. Sure, he acted like himself in some ways, but the viciously burning fire that was driving him before seemed to have long ago been extinguished, and it made her sad.

"I can't believe they did that to her!" Came a voice from down the hall, and Terezi was jarred from her stupor. "Don't you think that she's already going to go through enough as it is?" She sighed. "Whatever. Get her ready. I'll be quick about this."

Terezi turned her head in the direction of the tall, curvy troll that walked in front of her cell. She had heavily worked hair, that Terezi figured must have been quite long and thick to need to be that elaborate just to tie up into a bun. Her horns were also impressive, ridged and curled on either side of her head. She wore a leather apron and smelled faintly of strawberry. Her deep red lips formed into a reassuring smile as she stood across from Terezi, her leather gloved hands on her hips.

"Hello." She said pleasantly. "I see you're awake. My name is Aradia Megido, and though I'm a lowblood, I'm the head blacksmith here. I'll be branding you today, but don't be worry, It wont be that bad. I'm not cruel."

"Do whatever you want. It can't make things much worse." Said Terezi flatly, her voice hoarse.

Aradia nodded, and walked into the cell. "My assisstant is going to pull your shirt down so we can place the brand correctly, then he will hold a cloth over your nose and mouth so the actual brand will catch you by surprise. We find that usually makes it a little easier. It will only last a few seconds, and then we'll be done."

Terezi took a deep breath, not finding much comfort in that, if any, and nodded. "Alright."

She flinched when she felt warm hands pull her shirt off her shoulders so that the top of her chest was exposed, and held a cloth over her nose and mouth that smelled so strongly that it overwhelmed her senses and acted as a blindfold to her taste and smell. From there she heard the sound of footsteps and clanging metal and braced herself for what she knew was coming. Her heart thumped in her chest with the wait, and she cried out through the cloth when she felt the searing of the metal brand suddenly burn into the middle of her chest. When Aradia removed the brand, Terezi's eyes were clenched shut and tears streamed down her face as she felt suddenly, horribly faint.

"Untie her." Commanded Aradia. "Now!" She demanded when her assistant hesitated.

Terezi felt relieved as the straps were loosed and removed, and the shackles were removed from her wrists. She felt Aradia's warm arms and took in her strawberry scent as she lifted her out of the chair and sat her down on the floor.

"Are you with me?" She asked.

Terezi nodded. "Yeah."

"Well stay still, I'm going to tend to you. You'll need to be in a better state than this when you face your sentence this evening."

Terezi allowed her to bandage the new brand and her wrists, then gladly took the water and food before Aradia laid her on her side on the cell floor and shackled her wrists behind her back again.

"It's the best I can do." Said Aradia. "Sleep. There will be no repercussions in doing so, and you'll feel better and look more dignified when they take you to the flogging jut."

"Thanks." Said Terezi. "Why are you doing all this for me?"

Aradia leaned in and whispered in Terezi's ear. "Because I'm not like the rest of them. Don't tell anyone, but I'll always be a friend to the rebels. Karkat will also be getting a delivery of medical supplies so he can tend to you better later. Having you down there will be good for him. He really needs the company." She stood. "Good luck, Terezi." She said, and she and her assistant walked away.

o0o0o0o0

Terezi wasn't sure how long she had slept, but she was sure it was her burns and bruises that had woken her again. Her body still ached, her burns demanded her attention, and her dreams, which had also brought her back to consciousness, were more nightmares than anything. They were about the same things, the worry about what she was about to face, which had been clouding her mind, and that seed of confusion that had been nagging at her since her trial. Why? Why her sentence? Why had Gamzee helped her?

After thinking about it, she understood the lashing. If she was going to escape death, she'd have to pay for it in blood and agony, but why did she share Karkat's sentence? How did Gamzee know she'd been shooting for that? What was he up to? What did he want? That treacherous highblood clown had to have something up his nasty soda-stained sleeves.

She sighed, realizing that she was in no position to find that out for herself. In fact she may never find out. The highbloods had already demonstrated the power to render her completely helpless, and Karkat was so naïve in that hole. If she wasn't directly involved she'd probably never know.

"Hey sis." Come a voice.

Terezi didn't need to move. The over-sweetened grape scent and distinct voice tipped her off right away, and she glared at the floor. "Don't you call me "sis" Makara." She snarled back in her still hoarse voice.

"WELL THEN. I see you still have some bite, Pyrope. YOU WONT FOR LONG, the path you asked for will break you quickly."

"The path I asked for? How would you know something like that?"

"OH ISN'T THAT CUTE. The traitor still thinks she's the interrogator."

"Speak for yourself, clown." Snapped Terezi. "I may have betrayed the Empress, but at least I'm loyal to the allegiance I chose. You're a bigger traitor than me, suddenly switching sides, ratting out he Signless, beating and enslaving your own moirail. Don't talk to me about treachery."

"OH, I'M MOTHERFUCKING WOUNDED." He boomed sarcastically. "You might be right. NO YOU ARE RIGHT, but there's a vital difference between the two of us. I'M NOT THE ONE GETTNING THE WHIP AT DUSK."

He laughed and Terezi clenched her teeth.

"What do you want from me?" She growled.

Gamzee chuckled. "Oh, I don't want anything. AT LEAST NOT YET. I heard you talking to Karkat the past several days."

"What?" Said Terezi in surprise. Had they really been talking so loudly? Where had he been? Why didn't she smell him? Why was he even down there? "How?"

"NONE OF YOUR MOTHERFUCKING BUSINESS. I heard you telling him what you were shooting for, AND THE FALSE HOPE YOU GAVE HIM."

"That wasn't false!"

"Did you really think those things would save you then? IT CERTAINLY DIDN'T WORK OUT DID IT? Anyway, I decided to help you out. I GAVE YOU WHAT YOU WANTED."

"This is not what I wanted."

"How ungrateful. DON'T COMPLAIN. You want to be with him don't you?"

Terezi sighed. "Fine. Yes, I do."

"THEN THINK OF IT AS A FAVOR, an apology, FOR HIM, not you."

"Do you really expect me to believe that?"

"BELIEVE WHAT YOU WANT. That's all the explanation I'm going to give you. HAVE FUN TONIGHT, PYROPE. I'll take the sound of your screams as payment."

Then he walked away. Terezi thought she could smell the sadistic grin on his face.

o0o0o0o0

Terezi walked into the court again with her hands chained in front of her, a guard before and behind her, leading her to a large stone, smoothed and stained with blood. Terezi gulped as they made her kneel before it, then pushed her forward, stretching her torso over the rock, and chaining her arms far in front of her to a metal hook installed in the stone. She heard the sound of a knife being drawn and cringed as they cut the itchy burlap shirt from her body, leaving her stomach and chest bare against the cold, smooth rock, and her back fully exposed.

Her stomach plunged and her heart tried to make a break for it through her throat. She had to concentrate to keep from shaking. She had watched a public lashing before. She never thought she'd end up as the victim.

She flinched when she felt a cold finger touch her shoulder.

"I'm going to put this in your mouth." Came Gamzee's voice from behind her as a hand shoved a piece of leather between her pointed teeth. "IT WILL KEEP YOU FROM BITING OFF YOUR TONGUE. Be sure to scream you throat raw though. IT HELPS, and I want to hear it." He chuckled, and walked away.

Terezi glared at the stone. She wasn't planning on screaming for him.

"BEGIN WHEN READY." Boomed Gamzee, and Terezi's heart suddenly fet like a stampede in her chest as she braced herself.

The whip cracked behind her, and the moment it snapped at her back, she realized she wouldn't be able to keep her word as a clear scream pealed from her lips. A resounding "one" boomed through the court as Terezi bit deep into the leather, tears streaming down the sides of her face, and she wondered how she was going to live through this.


End file.
